Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Community Corrections topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Yamhill County Community Justice seeks certainty as state funding forecasts shift; proposes jail-transfer agreement changes
Summary
Jessica Beach, director of Yamhill County Community Justice, told the budget committee the department faces uncertainty in state funding and recommended shifting DOC —11-45— jail costs to a fixed per-daily transfer to the sheriff—s jail budget rather than continuing to carry related FTE in the Community Justice budget.
Jessica Beach, director of Yamhill County Community Justice, told the budget committee that large state funding streams for community corrections remain uncertain for the coming biennium, and that the office is planning conservatively for 2025-26.
Beach said about 94% to 96% of the department—s budget is financed through the Oregon Department of Corrections (DOC) capitated funding model. That grant is based on statewide population forecasts and a periodic cost study. Beach said the Governor—s recommended budget used an October population forecast that looked favorable, but an April forecast subsequently reduced the statewide service-level funding materially, decreasing DOC allocations and the state—s cost-study contribution in the current planning round.
11-45 jail-sharing change
Beach said Community Justice and the Sheriff negotiated a new approach for funding the DOC —11-45— population—local sentences of one year or less served in county jails—shifting to a per-daily cost and a direct transfer to jail operations rather than carrying county FTE in the Community Justice budget. The two sides agreed to base the transfer on an estimated daily cost in the $125—$150 range and budgeted approximately $550,000 for the coming fiscal year, based on a conservative bed use of 10 daily beds.
Beach said the jail transfer will be clearer in the county accounting by moving funding and the associated FTE in the sheriff—s jail budget rather than keeping FTE in Community Justice.
Programs, grants and staffing
Beach said the adult recovery cohort and pretrial programs have shown improved outcomes: the adult recovery cohort had increased participation and improved outcomes for women; the state reclaimed the pretrial program (June 2024) after legislation and funding changes and the local rollout was smooth.
On juvenile services, Beach said prevention programming diverted more youth than expected (1,122 participants and only three recidivisms) and juvenile recovery court shows a 67% success rate. She requested position authority to add a juvenile probation PO2 to handle rising risk levels and asked to trade a legal assistant position for a senior office specialist to reflect changed operational needs.
Funding uncertainty and next steps
Beach said critical revenue lines—DOC capitated funding, treatment-court and juvenile justice grants and the state cost-study adjustment—remain uncertain until state budget actions are finalized. She recommended the committee approve the requested budget items while noting risk of midyear adjustments depending on final state allocations.
Why it matters
Community Justice is heavily dependent on state grants and population forecasts for funding. Cuts or reductions at the state level would force local reallocation of FTE and program choices that could affect supervision and detention capacity. Beach—s requested position authority and the negotiated jail-transfer approach aim to align costs with service delivery and make jail costs more transparent in the sheriff—s budget.
What the budget committee will decide
Committee deliberations will consider the department—s staffing requests, the proposed 11-45 transfer structure and contingency plans should state grants be reduced.
